By Rebecca Dell COLUMBIA, Mo. — Mental illness afflicts 18.6 percent of the U.S. adult population, according to a Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration survey, and college-level athletes and coaches are not immune. Their stories in the media range from hopeful and triumphant to sad and tragic: Former Michigan defensive lineman Will…

By Rebecca Dell DENVER — Could farms be a solution to our allergy epidemic? A phenomenon called the farm effect, studied by Dr. Mark Holbreich of Allergy and Asthma Consultants, suggests that children who are consistently exposed to farm environments from a young age are less like to develop allergies. Holbreich was one of four allergy experts convened…

By Rebecca Dell DENVER — When reporting on suicide, one fear news writers have is that readers will respond by taking their own lives. How can reporters, editors and public relations personnel minimize this risk? At the annual conference of the Association of Health Care Journalists, a panel addressed why reporting suicides is important, ways to minimize harm from that reporting…

By Rebecca Dell DENVER — She’s told the story before, and Jacqui Banaszynski, a professor at the Missouri School of Journalism and Poynter Institute, will no doubt tell it again: Back when Ann Bancroft (the explorer, not the actress) dogsledded to the North Pole on an otherwise all-male expedition, Banaszynski, then a reporter writing a profile on…

As Mizzou Eco-Racing prepares two cars for the Shell Eco-marathon in April, one team member also works toward his own goal: going back home to rebuild Indonesia. By Rebecca Dell Update May 5, 2014: Mizzou Eco-Racing won the Communications Award at the Shell Eco-marathon Americas 2014 and received an honorable mention for the Safety Award.…

By Rebecca Dell COLUMBIA, Mo. — Wait. Give it some more time. Be patient. When you’re hurting, these words can be hard to hear. The precise causes of depression are not fully known, so treating depression is a multi-dimensional puzzle that includes therapy, medication and time. Doctors often start medication treatment for depression by prescribing a…

By Rebecca Dell COLUMBIA, Mo. — She started out as a researcher, but en route to her Ph.D. in molecular genetics, Tina Hesman Saey realized she didn’t want the lab life she had envisioned. So she finished her Ph.D. at Washington University in St. Louis and moved on to Boston University for a master’s in science journalism.…